Nowadays, teen deaths involving drugs and alcohol are all too common for those who live in the state of Virginia. One recent case reminds us that giving drugs to someone else could result in serious drug charges, especially if the person dies while taking the drugs.
An 18-year-old high school student has been charged with distributing drugs to a classmate, who was found dead in her home after attending a birthday party the night before. The medical examiner determined that the 17-year-old classmate passed away accidentally due to a combination of painkiller morphine, oxycodone, anti-anxiety drug alprazolam and alcohol in her system. The girl died in her sleep when the drugs stopped her breathing and slowed her heart rate.
The girl’s mother said that the girl returned home after the party, texted and used the computer before going to bed. The girl’s mother was at work the next day when a friend found that the girl was unresponsive.
Police believe that the 18-year-old gave the girl crushed morphine, but they have not commented on the interaction between the two young people. However, it appears that both students were acquaintances with a bright future ahead of them.
With one young person dead and another one facing serious legal consequences, this situation is tragic all around. However, if you are facing drug distribution charges, you should know that such charges do not always lead to convictions and that there is hope. In many cases, a young person gets charged with a crime, only to have the charges dropped or at least reduced.
Source: The Washington Post, “Va. High school student charged with giving drugs to classmate who died,” Justin Jouvenal, May 24, 2016